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 Talk Talk - Communication terms
Category: General technical and industrial
Date & country: 28/05/2010, UK
Words: 18630


Romany
Member of a nomadic people believed to have originated in northwestern India and now living throughout the world. They used to be thought of as originating in Egypt, hence the name Gypsy (a corruption of `Egyptian`). The Romany language, spoken in several different dialects, belongs to the Indic branch of the Indo-European family. The...

Romanov dynasty
Rulers of Russia from 1613 to the Russian Revolution in 1917. Under the Romanovs, Russia developed into an absolutist empire

Roman religion
Religious system that retained early elements of animism (with reverence for stones and trees) and totemism (see Romulus and Remus), and had a strong domestic base in the lares and penates, the cult of Janus and Vesta. It also had a main pantheon of gods derivative from the Greek one, which included Jupiter and Juno, Mars and Venus, Minerva, Diana,...

Roman law
Legal system of ancient Rome that is now the basis of civil law, one of the main European legal systems. It began under the republic, was developed under the empire, and continued in use in the Byzantine Empire until 1453. The first codification was that of the 12 Tables (450 BC), of which only fragments survive. Roman law assumed its final form in...

Romagna
Area of Italy on the Adriatic coast, under papal rule 1278–1860 and now part of the region of Emilia-Romagna

Roman Catholicism
Click images to enlargeOne of the main divisions of the Christian religion, separate from the Eastern Orthodox Church from 1054. It is headed by the pope, who traces his authority back through St Peter (the first bishop of Rome) to Jesus, through apostolic succession. Its headquarters are in the Vatican City State, in Rom...

Roland
French hero. His real and legendary deeds of valour and chivalry inspired many medieval and later romances, including the 11th-century Chanson de Roland and Ariosto's Orlando furioso. A knight of Charlemagne, Roland was killed in 778 with his friend Oliver and the 12 peers of France at Roncesvalles (in ...

Roget, Peter Mark
English physician and scholar, one of the founders of the University of London, and author of a Thesaurus of English Words and Phrases (1852), a text constantly revised and still in print, offering a range of words classified according to underlying concepts and meanings, as an aid to more effective expression and communication

Rodin,
(René François) French sculptor. He is considered by many the greatest of his day. Rodin freed sculpture from the idealizing conventions of the time by his realistic treatment of the human form and his emphasis on style and expression over subject. Many of his figures are characteriz...

Rodgers, Richard Charles
US composer. He collaborated with librettist Lorenz Hart (1895–1943) on songs like `Blue Moon` (1934) and musicals like On Your Toes (1936). With Oscar Hammerstein II, he wrote many musicals, including Oklahoma! (1943), South Pacific (1949), The King and I...

Rocky Mountains
Click images to enlargeLargest North American mountain system, extending for 4,800 km/3,000 mi from the Mexican plateau near Sante Fe, north through the west-central states of the USA, and through Canada to the Alaskan border. It forms part of the Continental Divide, which separates rivers draining into the Atlant...

Rochester
City in southeastern England, on the Medway estuary, in Medway Towns unitary authority; population (2001) 27,100. Rochester upon Medway district joined with Gillingham to form the Medway Towns unitary authority in April 1998. Rochester was a Roman town, Durobrivae. It has a 12th-century Norman castle keep (the largest in England), a 12th...

Rochdale
Industrial town in Greater Manchester, northwest England, on the River Roch, 16 km/10 mi northeast of Manchester; population (2001) township 97,400; borough 205,350. It was formerly an important cotton-spinning town; industries now include textiles and the manufacture of machinery and asbestos. The Rochdale Pioneers founded the ...

Robinson, Edward G
Romanian-born US actor. He typically played gangster roles, as in Little Caesar (1930), but also gave strong performances in psychological dramas such as Scarlet Street (1945). Robinson also performed in dramatic and comedy roles in film and on the stage. His other films include Dr Ehrlich's Ma...

Robinson, W(illiam) Heath
English cartoonist and illustrator. He made humorous drawings of bizarre machinery for performing simple tasks, such as raising one's hat. A clumsily designed apparatus is often described as a `Heath Robinson` contraption

Robeson, Paul Bustill
US singer, actor, lawyer, and activist. From the 1930s he was a staunch fighter against anti-semitism and racism against black people, and he was a supporter of the various national liberation movements that came to prominence in Africa after World War II. Robeson appeared in Eugene O'Neill's play The Emperor Jones (1...

Robbins, Jerome
US dancer and choreographer. He was co-director of the New York City Ballet 1969–83 (with George Balanchine). His ballets were internationally renowned and he was considered the greatest US-born ballet choreographer. He also choreographed the musicals The King and I (1951), West Side Story (1957), ...

robbery
In law, a variety of theft: stealing from a person, using force, or the threat of force, to intimidate the victim

Robbia, della
Italian family of sculptors and architects. They were active in Florence. Luca della Robbia (1400–1482) created a number of major works in Florence, notably the marble cantoria (singing gallery) in the cathedral 1431–38 (Museo del Duomo), with lively groups of choristers. Luca also developed a characteristic style of gl...

Robbe-Grillet, Alain
French writer. He was the leading theorist of le nouveau roman (`the new novel`), a genre of the 1950s which emphasized physical description over plot and characterization. His novels include Les Gommes/The Erasers (1953), Le Voyeur/The Voyeur (1955), La Jalousie...

ROM
In computing, a memory device in the form of a collection of integrated circuits (chips), frequently used in microcomputers. ROM chips are loaded with data and programs during manufacture and, unlike RAM (random-access memory) chips, can subsequently only be read, not written to, by a computer. However, the contents of the chips are not lost wh...

rook
Gregarious European crow Corvus frugilegus. The plumage is black and lustrous and the face bare; the legs, toes, and claws are also black. A rook can grow to 45 cm/18 in long. Rooks nest in colonies (rookeries) at the tops of trees. They feed mainly on invertebrates found just below the soil surface. The last 5 mm/0.2...

roebuck
Male of the Eurasian roe deer

roller
Any brightly coloured bird of the Old World family Coraciidae, resembling crows but in the same order as kingfishers and hornbills. Rollers grow up to 32 cm/13 in long. The name is derived from the habit of some species of rolling over in flight

robin
Migratory songbird Erithacus rubecula of the thrush family Muscicapidae, order Passeriformes, found in Europe, West Asia, Africa, and the Azores. About 13 cm/5 in long, both sexes are olive brown with a red breast. Two or three nests are constructed during the year in sheltered...

roadrunner
Crested North American ground-dwelling bird Geococcyx californianus of the cuckoo family, found in the southwestern USA and Mexico. It can run at a speed of 25 kph/15 mph

roach
Any freshwater fish of the Eurasian genus Rutilus, of the carp family, especially R. rutilus of northern Europe. It is dark green above, whitish below, with reddish lower fins; it grows to 35 cm/1.2 ft

rotifer
Any of the tiny invertebrates, also called `wheel animalcules`, of the phylum Rotifera. Mainly freshwater, some marine, rotifers have a ring of cilia that carries food to the mouth and also provides propulsion. They are the smallest of multicellular animals – few reach 0.05 cm/0.02 in

Royal Academy of Arts
British society founded by George III in London in 1768 to encourage painting, sculpture, and architecture; its first president was Joshua Reynolds. It is now housed in Old Burlington House, Piccadilly. There is an annual summer exhibition for contemporary artists, and tuition is provided at the Royal Academy schools. In recent years the Royal ...

rootstock
Another name for rhizome, an underground plant organ

root
(botany) Click images to enlargeThe part of a plant that is usually underground, and whose primary functions are anchorage and the absorption of water and dissolved mineral salts. Roots usually grow downwards and towards water (that is, they ar...

Roman numerals
Ancient European number system using symbols different from Arabic numerals (the ordinary numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and so on). The seven key symbols in Roman numerals, as represented today, are I (1), V (5), X (10), L (50), C (100), D (500), and M (1,000). There is no zero, and therefore no place-value as is fundamental to the Arabic system. The ...

rolling
Common method of shaping metal. Rolling is carried out by giant mangles, consisting of several sets, or stands, of heavy rollers positioned one above the other. Red-hot metal slabs are rolled into sheet and also (using shaped rollers) girders and rails. Metal sheets are often cold-rolled finally to impart a harder surface

Rolling Stones, the
British band formed in 1962, once notorious as the `bad boys` of rock. Original members were Mick Jagger (1943– ), Keith Richards (1943– ), Brian Jones (1942–1969), Bill Wyman (1936– ), Charlie Watts (1941– ), and Ian Stewart (1938–1985). A rock-and-roll institution, the Rolling St...

Romansch
Member of the Romance branch of the Indo-European language family, spoken by some 50,000 people in the eastern cantons of Switzerland. It was accorded official status in 1937 alongside French, German, and Italian. It is also known among scholars as Rhaeto-Romanic

Romanian language
Member of the Romance branch of the Indo-European language family, spoken in Romania, Macedonia, Albania, and parts of northern Greece. It has been strongly influenced by the Slavonic languages and by Greek. The Cyrillic alphabet was used until the 19th century, when a variant of the Roman alphabet was adopted

Romance languages
Branch of Indo-European languages descended from the Latin of the Roman Empire (`popular` or `vulgar` as opposed to `classical` Latin). The present-day Romance languages with national status are French, Italian, Portuguese, Romanian, and Spanish. Romansch (or Rhaeto-Romanic) is a minority language of Switze...

robot
Click images to enlargeAny computer-controlled machine that can be programmed to move or carry out work. Robots are often used in industry to transport materials or to perform repetitive tasks. For instance, robotic arms, fixed to a floor or workbench, may be used to paint machine parts or assemble electronic circuits...

rowing
Propulsion of a boat by oars, either by one or two rowers with two oars each (sculling) or by crews (two, four, or eight persons) with one oar each, often with a coxswain (the non-rowing member who steers and determines rowing speed). Major events include the world championships, first held in 1962 for men and 1974 for women, and the Boat Race ...

Rogers, Richard George
English high-tech architect. He established his reputation and signature functionalist style with the Pompidou Centre in Paris (1972–76), designed with Renzo Piano, and went on to design some of the world's most notable modern buildings in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. He received architecture's prestigious Pritzker Prize...

Rosh Hashanah
Two-day religious observance that marks the start of the Jewish New Year (first new moon after the autumn equinox, beginning the month of Tishri). It is traditionally announced by blowing a shofar, a ram's-horn trumpet. It is the first of the high holy days, or `days of awe`, and celebrates the creation of the world, the repen...

royal assent
In the UK, formal consent given by a British sovereign to the passage of a bill through Parliament, after which it becomes an act of Parliament. The last instance of a royal refusal was the rejection of the Scottish Militia Bill of 1702 by Queen Anne

rocket
(space) Click images to enlargeProjectile driven by the reaction of gases produced by a fast-burning fuel. Unlike jet engines, which are also reaction engines, rockets carry their own oxygen supply to burn their fuel and do not require any surrou...

Royal Marines
British military force trained for amphibious warfare. See marines

Royal Society
Oldest and premier scientific society in Britain, originating in 1645 and chartered in 1662; Robert Boyle, Christopher Wren, and Isaac Newton were prominent early members. Its Scottish equivalent is the Royal Society of Edinburgh (1783)

rose
(botany) Any shrub or climbing plant belonging to the rose family, with prickly stems and fragrant flowers in many different colours. Numerous cultivated forms have been derived from the sweetbrier or eglantine (R. rubiginosa...

rosemary
Evergreen shrub belonging to the mint family, native to the Mediterranean and western Asia, with small, narrow, scented leaves and clusters of pale blue or purple flowers. It is widely cultivated as a herb for use in cooking and for its aromatic oil, used in perfumery and pharmaceuticals. Rosemary is...

rowan
Another name for the European mountain ash tree

rock and roll
Pop music born of a fusion of rhythm and blues, and country and western, and based on electric guitar and drums. Its sound usually features an energetic driving rhythm and heavy insistent beat. The music is usually in four-beat time (often 4/4) with a strong accent on the second and fourth beats. In the mid-1950s, with the rise to fame ...

rock
Click images to enlargeConstituent of the Earth's crust composed of minerals or materials of organic origin that have consolidated into hard masses. There are three basic types of rock: igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic. Rocks are composed of a combination (or aggregate) of minerals, and the property of a rock...

Rollo
First Viking ruler and Duke of Normandy (although he never used the title). He founded the duchy of Normandy and established the dynasty of William (I) the Conqueror. The city of Rouen is named after him. Rollo left Norway about 875 and marauded, sailing up the River Seine to Rouen. By the Treaty of St-Clair-sur-Epte (912), Charles III ...

Roman Britain
Click images to enlargePeriod in British history from the two expeditions by Julius Caesar in 55 and 54 BC to the early 5th century AD. Roman relations with Britain began with Caesar's expeditions, but the actual conquest was not begun until AD 43. During the reign of the emperor Domitian, the governor of the province...

romance
In literature, tales of love and chivalric adventure, in verse or prose, that became popular in France about 1200 and spread throughout Europe

Romanesque architecture
Style of Western European architecture of the 10th to 12th centuries, marked by rounded arches, solid volumes, and an emphasis on perpendicular elements such as arcades. The ribbed groin vault developed in this period, which was to become central to Gothic architecture. In England Romanesque style is...

Roeg, Nicolas
(Jack) English film director and writer. He was initially a cinematographer. His striking visual style is often combined with fractured, disturbing plots, as in Performance (1970), Don't Look Now (1973), The Man Who Fell to Earth (19...

Rogers, Carl Ransom
US psychologist who developed the client-centred approach to counselling and psychotherapy. This stressed the importance of clients making their own decisions and developing their own potential (self-actualization). He emphasized the value of genuine interest on the part of a therapist who is also accepting and empathetic. Rogers's view...

Roman art
Sculpture and painting of ancient Rome, from the 4th century BC to the fall of the Western Empire in the 5th century AD. Much Roman art was intended for public education, notably the sculpted triumphal arches and giant columns, such as Trajan's Column AD 106–113, and portrait sculptures of s...

Romano, Giulio
Italian painter and architect; see Giulio Romano

Romanticism
(music) In music, the period from about 1810 to around 1910 – that is, after the classical period. Classical composers had tried to create a balance between expression and formal structure; Romantic composers altered this balance by applying more freedom to the form and structure of t...

rondo
Musical form where the main theme keeps recurring with contrasting sections in between (ABACADA). The A section is always in the tonic key, while the contrasting section (or episode) is in a related key. The rondo is often lively in character and is a popular final movement of a sonata, concerto, or symphony

roots music
Term originally denoting reggae, later encompassing any music indigenous to a particular culture; see world music

Rossellini, Roberto
Italian film director. His World War II trilogy, Roma città aperta/Rome, Open City (1945), Paisà/Paisan (1946), and Germania anno zero/Germany Year Zero (1947), reflects his humanism and is considered a landmark of European cinema. He is considered one of the leading exp...

royal commission
In the UK and Canada, a group of people appointed by the government (nominally by the sovereign) to investigate a matter of public concern and make recommendations on any actions to be taken in connection with it, including changes in the law. In cases where agreement on recommendations cannot be reached, a minority report can be submitted by disse...

Romania
Country in southeast Europe, bounded north and east by Ukraine, east by Moldova, southeast by the Black Sea, south by Bulgaria, southwest by Serbia, and northwest by Hungary. Government Under the 1991 constitution, as amended in 2003, Romania has a limited presidential political system, with executiv...

rodent
Any mammal of the worldwide order Rodentia, making up nearly half of all mammal species. Besides ordinary `cheek teeth`, they have a single front pair of incisor teeth in both upper and lower jaw, which continue to grow as they are worn down

rotten borough
English parliamentary constituency, before the Great Reform Act of 1832, that returned members to Parliament in spite of having small numbers of electors. Such a borough could easily be manipulated by those with sufficient money or influence

Rome, ancient history
Click images to enlargeAncient Rome was a civilization based on the city of Rome. It lasted for about 800 years. Rome is traditionally said to have been founded as a kingdom in 753 BC. Following the expulsion of its last king, Tarquinius Superbus, the monarchy became a republic (traditionally in 509 BC). From then, its hi...

Robert
(I) King of Scots from 1306, successful guerrilla fighter, and grandson of Robert de Bruce. In 1307 he displayed his tactical skill in the Battle of Loudun Hill against the English under Edward I, and defeated the English again under Edward II at Bannockburn in 1314. In 1328 the Treaty of Nort...

Robert II
(of Scotland) King of Scotland from 1371. He was the son of Walter (1293–1326), steward of Scotland, and Marjory, daughter of Robert the Bruce. He acted as regent during the exile and captivity of his uncle David II, whom he eventually succeeded. He was the first king of the house of Stua...

Robert III
King of Scotland from 1390, son of Robert II. He was unable to control the nobles, and the government fell largely into the hands of his brother, Robert, Duke of Albany (c. 1340–1420)

Robert
(II) Duke of Normandy 1087–1106. He was the son of William the Conqueror, and a noted crusader 1096–1100. When the English throne passed to his younger brother William II in 1087, Robert was unable to recover it by war. In 1106 Robert again attempted to recover England from Henry I, ...

Robin Hood
In English legend, an outlaw and champion of the poor against the rich, said to have lived in Sherwood Forest, Nottinghamshire, during the reign of Richard I (1189–99). He feuded with the sheriff of Nottingham, accompanied by Maid Marian and a band of followers known as his `merry men`. He appears in many popular ballads from the 13t...

Roosevelt,
(Anna) US social worker, lecturer, and first lady. Her newspaper column `My Day`, started in 1935, was widely syndicated. She influenced New Deal policies, especially those supporting desegregation. She was a delegate to the...

rope
Stout cordage with circumference over 2.5 cm/1 in. Rope is made similarly to thread or twine, by twisting yarns together to form strands, which are then in turn twisted around one another in the direction opposite to that of the yarns. Although hemp is still used to make rope, nylon is increasingly used

royalty
In law, payment to the owner for rights to use or exploit literary or artistic copyrights and patent rights in new inventions of all kinds

rodeo
Click images to enlargeOriginally a practical means of rounding up cattle in North America and now a professional sport. Ranching skills such as bronco busting, bull riding, steer wrestling, and calf roping are all rodeo events. Because rodeo livestock is valuable, rules for its handling are laid out by the American Human...

roulette
Casino game of chance in which the players bet on a ball landing in the correct segment (numbered 0–36 and alternately coloured red and black) on a rotating wheel. Bets can be made on a single number, double numbers, 3, 4, 6, 8, 12, or 24 numbers. Naturally the odds are reduced the more numbers are selected. Bets can also be made on the number...

rounders
Bat-and-ball game similar to baseball but played on a much smaller pitch. The first reference to rounders was in 1744

root crop
Plant cultivated for its swollen edible root (which may or may not be a true root). Potatoes are the major temperate root crop; the major tropical root crops are cassava, yams, and sweet potatoes. Root crops are second in importance only to cereals as human food. Roots have a high carbohydrate content, but their protein content rarely exceeds 2...

Robinson, Sugar Ray
US boxer. He was world welterweight champion 1945–51; he defended his title five times. Defeating Jake LaMotta in 1951, he took the middleweight title. He lost the title six times and won it seven times. He retired at the age of 45. Career highlights Professional record (1940–65) fights: 202; wins: 175 (109 within the dist...

Rowntree, B(enjamin) Seebohm
English entrepreneur and philanthropist. He used much of the money he acquired as chair (1925–41) of the family firm of confectioners, H I Rowntree, to fund investigations into social conditions. His writings include Poverty, A Study of Town Life (1901), a landmark in empirical sociology (study supported by observed evidence...

Rondônia
Federal unit (state) of northwest Brazil, within the drainage basin of the Amazon River, and bordered on the southwest by Bolivia; the centre of Amazonian tin and gold mining and a frontier region of agricultural colonization; area 238,400 sq km/92,000 sq mi; population (2000 est) 1,377,800; capital Pôrto Velho. Its princip...

Romanesque art
European art of the 10th to 12th centuries; see medieval art

rococo
(art) Movement in the arts and architecture in 18th-century Europe, particularly in France, that tended towards lightness, elegance, delicacy, and decorative charm. The term `rococo` is derived from the French rocaille (rock- or shell-work), a soft styl...

Rohmer, Eric
French film director, screenwriter, and critic. Part of the French New Wave, his films are often concerned with the psychology of self-deception. They include Ma Nuit chez Maud/My Night at Maud's (1969), Le Genou de Claire/Claire's Knee (1970), Die Marquise von O/The Marquise of...

Roach, Hal
(Harry Eugene) US film producer. He was active from the 1910s to the 1940s, producing many comedies. He worked with Laurel and Hardy and produced films for Harold Lloyd. His work includes The Music Box (1932), Way Out West (1936), and Of Mice and ...

Rogers, Ginger
US actor, dancer, and singer. She worked from the 1930s to the 1950s, often starring with Fred Astaire in such films as Top Hat (1935) and Swing Time (1936). Her other film work includes Bachelor Mother (1939) and Kitty Foyle (1940; Academy Award). She later appeared in...

root
(equation) Of an equation, a value that satisfies the equality. For example, x = 0 and x = 5 are roots of the equation x2 -5x = 0

Robben Island
Island in Table Bay, Cape Town, South Africa. It was used by the South African government to house political prisoners. Nelson Mandela was imprisoned here 1964–82

rosebay willowherb
Common perennial weed. See willowherb

Roses, Wars of the
Civil wars in England 1455–85 between the houses of Lancaster (badge: red rose) and York (badge: white rose), both of which claimed the throne through descent from the sons of Edward III. As a result of Henry VI's lapse into insanity in 1453, Richard, Duke of York, was installed as protector of the realm. Upon his recovery, Henry f...

Roe v. Wade
US Supreme Court decision of 1973 dealing with the constitutionality of state anti-abortion laws. The case challenged a Texas statute prohibiting the abortion of pregnancies that did not threaten the mother's life. The Court struck down the Texas law, ruling that state prohibition of abortion is unconstitutional on two grounds: (1) wome...

road
Specially constructed route for wheeled vehicles to travel on. Reinforced tracks became necessary with the invention of wheeled vehicles in about 3000 BC and most ancient civilizations had some form of road network. Early history The first major road was the Persian Royal Road from the Gulf to the Aegean Sea, more than 2,800 km/4,480 mi long, u...

roughage
Alternative term for dietary fibre, material of plant origin that cannot be digested by enzymes normally present in the human gut

Robinson, Mary
Irish academic and Labour politician, president 1990–97. She became a professor of law at the age of 25. A strong supporter of women's rights, she campaigned for the liberalization of Ireland's laws prohibiting divorce and abortion. From 1997 to 2002 she was the United Nations (UN) high commissioner for human rights. From 2002 she has ...

root hair
Tiny, hair-like outgrowth of some surface cells of plant roots that greatly increases the area available for the absorption of water and other materials such as minerals. It is a delicate structure, which survives for a few days only and does not develop into a root. Root hair cells are found jus...

Rolls, Master of the
British judge; see Master of the Rolls

Robinson, Smokey
US singer, songwriter, and record producer. He was associated with Motown records from its conception. He was lead singer of the Miracles 1957–72, whose hits include `Shop Around` (1961) and `The Tears of a Clown` (1970). His solo hits include `Cruisin'` (1979) and `Being With You` (1981). His light ...

Rome, Treaties of
Two international agreements signed 25 March 1957 by Belgium, France, West Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands, which established the European Economic Community and the European Atomic Energy Commission (Euratom). The terms of the economic treaty, which came into effect 1 January 1958, provided for economic cooperation, reduction (and ...

Romanian
People of Romanian culture from Romania, Serbia, Moldova, and the surrounding area. There are 20–25 million speakers of the Romanian language. Historically the Romanians were known as Vlachs (German `foreigner`). The religion of the Romanians is predominantly Romanian Orthodox, though there is a Greek Orthodox minority